Teaching Him To Fly
by daisy.wenham.is.my.lover
Summary: AU:Jean didn't die and X3 never happened. A mysterious mutant girl crashes, literally, into the lives of the XMen, especially Logan's. How will Logan deal with his surprising feelings for the mutant girl and how will he help her deal with her past? R&R!
1. Chapter 1

Teaching Him To Fly

Author's note: AU; happens after X2-- Jean didn't die and X3 doesn't happen

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, except Angel (I started this story before X3 and Angel is a chick, not a dude)

Warnings: M for later chapters (gets a little discriptive) and also for language

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Scott stopped and looked at Logan. "Did you hear that?" he asked. "Yeah," Logan replied, his forehead furrowing, "More like felt." "I can't be sure, but it felt like a telepath was trying to send a message," Scott said, looking to see if any of the telepathic students were close enough to send a signal like that, "Who do you think—" Logan held up his hand and Scott stopped talking as Logan narrowed his eyes and pushed his ears back, trying to hear something. "Something just hit the outer wall," he said, heading out the door into the rain, Scott on his heels. 

Angel had been flying for too long, and she knew that her altitude was dropping drastically, but the wind and rain had taken their toll on her and she was too tired to continue. She knew that she was going to crash into something a split second before she hit a very solid stone wall. Sparks exploded in her mind and everything went black.

Scott squinted against the driving rain and knelt down beside the crumpled shape. It was a young woman with dark red wings protruding from her back. _Mutant,_ he automatically thought. Her short hair was sopping wet, and her once-white tank top and faded jeans were torn and muddy.

"Oh, Christ," Logan exclaimed when he saw the young woman. He crouched next to her, brushing the sodden clumps of hair away from her face. This motion revealed her heavily bandaged eyes. "We need to get her inside," Logan said, wiping rain out of his eyes and preparing to lift the girl in his arms. "No, you can't move her!" Scott protested, "We don't know if there has been any spinal injury and she can't be moved until we figure that out!" "Look, bub," Logan explained, his minimal patience growing very thin, "She flew into the wall and hit her head, see!" He pointed to the quickly growing lump on the side of the woman's forehead. "Now, think to yourself: which do you think is better for her? To get inside and get dry and warm or to sit out here in the freezing wind and rain on the _slight _chance that she may have hurt her spine, huh?" Scott said nothing. "That's what I thought," Logan said in reply to Scott's silence. He carefully scooped the young woman up in his arms and they headed back into the mansion.

Jean came bursting into the exam room not ten seconds after Logan had laid the unconscious woman on the table. "Both of you out, now!" She ordered. Both Scott and Logan began to protest but she simply held up one finger and said, "Now. The Professor wants to see you both in his office. Pronto."

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Let me know what you think. There's more to come, I just need to think of a transition between this part and the next one. Reviews please! This is my first post, so I apologize if it's not good. 


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as they stepped into his office, The Professor began speaking. "Thank you for rescuing this young lady. Jean is tending to her injuries as we speak. What can you tell me about her?" Scott described the young woman, including her wings. "Thank you, Scott," The Professor said, "It's important that we figure out as much as we can about her." "Why can't you just read her mind?" Logan asked. The Professor sighed and said, "It's not that simple, Logan. I've tried that, but she has more mental barriers than you. Even in her unconscious state, I could only get a flicker of information before I was blocked out completely." "Well, what was it?" Logan asked, "What did you find out?" The Professor smiled. "Her name is Angel, and she loves to fly."

When Angel woke up, there were dry bandages over her eyes. And she had no idea where she was, which scared her to no end. She strained her ears, listening for any sound. The slightly antiseptic smell of a hospital caught in her nostrils sending a brief flash of panic through her. _Am I back in his lab? _she wondered. _Did he catch me_? All of a sudden she felt a cool breeze on her face as a door was opened and she sat up. As she did, she realized that her wrists were tied to the bed she was lying on. "Who are you?" she called out, knowing that someone had entered the room. She tried to hide the fear in her voice, but she wasn't sure she succeeded.

It was Logan's turn to check on their "visitor" and he stepped into the exam room. At that moment, the young woman sat up called out "Who are you?" "Hey, just relax," Logan said, stepping closer, "My name is Logan." "Where am I?" she asked, continuing to struggle at the bonds holding her to the bed. "Hey, hey, listen to me," Logan said softly, "Just relax, and I'll tell you everything you want to know. Just take some deep breaths and stop struggling." He extended a claw and cut the cords binding her wrists to the bed, noting the nearly invisible shudder that went through her with the touch of his claw against her skin.

_Whoever this man is_, Angel thought, _He sure has a really nice voice._ Calmed by the gentle words of this stranger, Angel took a few deep breaths and said, "Alright Logan, where the hell am I?" "The exam room in the lab at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters, in upstate New York," was Logan's reply. "'Gifted Youngsters'?" Angel snorted, "How old are you?"

"I'm not a student," Logan replied, a wry grin on his face, "I guess you could say I'm a teacher." _Don't ask her about the bandages over her eyes _Logan heard the Professor say in his head. _I'm on my way down._ Logan sat down on the edge of the bed and continued answering Angel's questions.

As Angel listened to Logan, she tried to picture what he looked like. Tall, dark, and handsome? Blonde hair, blue eyes? "Logan," she said suddenly, interrupting him, "Can I see your face?" She heard his hesitation and then added, "I mean with my hands. I'd just like to get a sense of what you look like." Upon hearing no reply, Angel slowly reached her hand out in the direction that Logan's voice had come from. She flinched slightly when his hand brushed against hers as he took her fingers lightly in his and guided them to his cheek. She slowly drew her thumb across his warm cheekbone, and then trailed her fingers across his rough sideburns and along his strong jaw line.

The light touch of Angel's fingers across Logan's face sent shivers snaking through his body and he closed his eyes. As her fingers trailed up from his chin, they traced the edges of his lips. She lifted her other hand and ran both hands over his forehead and eyebrows before tracing a line down the center of his nose. Next, her hands moved to his hair and brushed against his ears, and then followed the soft skin of his neck down to his shoulder, then to his bicep, then to his bare forearm. Angel's fingertips fuzzed against the hair on his arms as she continued her path down along the inside of his wrist and brushing a feathery touch over the palm of his hand. She lifted her hand and felt his collarbone, then felt down his t-shirt clad chest. Logan hoped that his heart wasn't beating too uncontrollably. This strange and mysterious mutant girl was having a strange effect on him.

Angel stopped her wandering hand when she felt Logan's heart beating underneath her fingertips. She could feel the warmth of his skin through his t-shirt and after a few seconds, let her hand run over Logan's strong chest and muscled stomach. Logan cleared his throat and said, "Uhh, Angel," but was interrupted by the mechanical sound of the lab doors sliding open.

Logan stood and turned at the sound of the doors and saw the Professor come in, followed by Scott and Storm. "Logan, who is it?" he heard Angel ask. The Professor merely looked at Logan and rolled right up next to the bed. "Hello, Angel. I am Professor Charles Xavier," he said in his calm voice, "With me are two of my colleagues Ororo Monroe and Scott Summers. I see you've met Logan." "Yes, he was kind enough to tell me where I am, and the basic story of how I got here," Angel replied, "How did you know my name?" "That's not important right now," Charles replied, "What matters is that you aren't harmed from your crash into the west wall. Although I have a few questions for you about your wings, which seem to have vanished."

Angel knew that her face went white at the sound of his words. How could she have trusted these people? They were just mutant haters and tormenters like everyone else she knew. However, these thoughts were quickly banished from her mind when Charles continued, saying, "Angel, we're not going to hurt you; you don't have to worry about being a mutant. We're all mutants here. Even the students." "But...but Logan said this was a school for gifted kids," she said, slightly confused. "These children _are_ gifted," Charles said, a smile in his voice, "They just all happen to be mutants." _Welcome Angel_ Angel jerked her head at those last two words. She somehow knew they weren't said aloud, but projected into her head. "You—you're a telepath!" she exclaimed. "Yes," Charles replied out loud, "And you are too."

The professor motioned everyone else out of the room, but when he saw a flicker of fear cross Angel's face at the retreating footsteps, he mentally asked Logan to stay. The brooding Canadian had apparently formed some kind of bond with this young woman which would probably be useful in keeping her calm. "Alright, Angel," The Professor calmly said as he rolled closer to the bed, "I have a few questions for you. You've obviously been through a traumatic experience, but I need to have some answers. If it helps, its just Logan and me; I've sent everyone else away. Would you be more comfortable with just the two of us?" She shook her head and moved to a sitting position. "No, this is fine," she replied with a half smile as Logan perched on the bed frame next to her. "Your wings," the Professor stated calmly, "Tell us about your wings."

Angel took a deep breath. "Well," she started shakily, "They're 16 feet across from tip to tip and the color changes, depending on what mood I'm in. As you've probably noticed, they can 'appear' or 'disappear' as I wish." She turned around so that her back was towards the two men and her wings began to appear.

Logan watched Angel's wings growing with a small sense of amazement. The tips pushed through her skin and continued to extend. When all 16 feet of her currently pale green feathered wings were extended fully, it was a truly magnificent sight. "You can touch them if you want," she whispered over her shoulder. Logan reached out and traced along the ridgeline of the wing, noticing how soft the shimmery feathers were, yet how strong the structure of the wing felt.

Angel felt Logan's gentle touch and started to draw her wings back in before the color change alerted Logan to her feelings about him. She barely knew him, yet his touch caused her stomach to flutter and his calm, deep voice captivated her.

Charles watched in amazement as Angel's wings simultaneously appeared to slide into her back and shimmer out of existence. He had never seen anything like this before and it was truly beautiful. "What about your eyes?" he asked, knowing it was going to be a difficult question for her to answer, "Did somebody do something to your eyes?" "Yes," Angel replied after a deep breath, "He operated on them and after he bandaged them, he said that I couldn't ever take off the wrappings or open my eyes, or else I would go blind. So I'm not going to. But for the most part, I can use my telepathic powers to sense where things are, so I can get around." "Who operated on them?" Logan asked, raising an eyebrow as Charles glanced at him. "No one in particular," Angel replied, shrugging her indifference, "Just a very bad man who likes to experiment on mutants. Anything else you want to know?" "Is that where you were coming from?" Charles asked, "Were you running away from the people who did this to you?" "I was escaping from captivity," Angel replied, getting slightly agitated, "I didn't particularly want to be locked in a cage anymore, with an evil bastard doing experiments on me, so I buggered out. Anything else?"

"Did you send out a telepathic message just before you crashed?" Logan asked, ignoring another Look from the Professor. "I could tell I was going to hit something," Angel answered, brushing her fingers against the lump on her forehead and wincing, "So I sent out a kind of panic message to anyone who was near. You probably felt that. Do you guys have anything to eat around here?" Angel was obviously finished talking for now. "Logan, will you show Angel around the mansion?" the Professor asked, "I need to finish getting ready for the overnight trip tomorrow." The Professor, Storm, Jean, and Scott were taking all of the kids into Canada for two days, leaving Logan and Kurt behind to keep watch at the mansion. And it looked like Angel was going to be keeping them company, at least for the time being. Not that Logan minded.


	3. Chapter 3

Note: Sorry I haven't updated in, well, a few years. Whoops! :D I have had a lot of difficulties filling in the gaps in this story that are between the parts I want to tell, but I am attempting to do so. Any advice or suggestions are very welcome! Thanks

Angel slid off the bed, the tile floor cold under her feet, and followed Logan out of the room. She used her telepathic abilities to sense where she was so she wouldn't crash into anything. A slight smile came to her lips as she followed the pounding footsteps down the hallway. From what she could tell, Logan was very attractive and had the most intriguing scent she had ever smelled. All of a sudden, a door shut behind her and the floor rose up beneath her.

Logan glanced behind him at Angel, a smile crossing his face as he saw the graceful way she moved. She was wearing only a tank top and a pair of shorts, probably Jean's, and her bare feet pattered on the tile floor. They stepped into the elevator, and when it began to ascend, she bent her knees and threw her arms out, the tips of her wings beginning to show. Logan grabbed her wrist and said, "It's alright. We're just in an elevator." Angel straightened up, a sheepish look on her face. "You must think I'm pretty lame to get freaked out by that," she said, her head pointed straight ahead. Logan shook his head, then upon realizing that she couldn't see him, grinned and replied, "No, not at all. It would freak me out if I had to find my way around without being able to see. I should have warned you about the elevator. Sorry."

In the kitchen, Logan opened the refrigerator and asked, "What do you want?" "I dono, what do you have?" Logan pulled out some cold pizza and put it on a plate. "You like cold pizza?" Angel stuck out her hand and grabbed the plate Logan handed her and then with a mouth full of pizza asked, "You got any beer?" Logan bit back a snort of laughter and replied, "Well, none in here; this is a school. But I have a couple bottles in my room that I can go grab. I'll be right back."

Angel perched on a stool and continued to munch on her pizza. "Hey!" a voice startled her and she jumped up, hands in the defensive position. "Who are you?" the voice asked. "My name is Angel," Angel replied, "Who are _you_?" "I'm Warren," the voice said, "You're that mutant that Logan and Scott found outside." "Yeah, I'm _that mutant_," Angel spat, lowering her hands.

Warren had been walking past the kitchen, pondering if he should stop in for a quick bite of ice cream, when he saw a completely unfamiliar person sitting at the counter eating cold pizza. He now realized that it was the girl that he overheard Logan and Scott talking about on the way to the Professor's office. She was beautiful, but he was thrown off by the white bandages covering her eyes. His father had taught him how to read people, but he could only do it if he saw their eyes. "Are you blind?" he asked, without a shred of tact. Angel snorted and said, "Yeah, currently. What about you? What's your 'special gift'? Besides tactlessness, of course." "I've got wings," Warren replied.

When Warren said that he had wings, Angel nearly choked on her pizza. However, she managed to swallow and not aspirate her mouthful of pizza into her lungs. "Wings?" she said, coughing, "How big? I mean, can you fly?" There was a sound like heavy sheets flapping in the wind and Warren said, "See for yourself." "Ha ha," Angel replied sarcastically, "Remember the whole blind thing?" However, she got to her feet again and stretched her hand out to where she thought Warren's wings were.

Warren watched Angel as she reached out for his wings. He hadn't meant to actually say "see for yourself"; it just came out. And then Angel's fingers were brushing his wingtips and he forgot all else. Since she couldn't see him, Warren stared at her unabashedly. He had never seen anyone quite like her. Her cropped, strawberry-blond hair was curly and looked like, well, like she'd just had sex, to be truthful. Her rosy cheeks were dotted with freckles and her lips looked soft. And Warren was definitely loving the clothes she was wearing. Despite the fact that the tank top was a little big, Warren could still see her well-toned arms and proof that she was a bit chilly.

And Warren could feel Angel's hands as she ran them all over his wings and back. "What color are they?" she asked softly, trailing her fingertips over the pinfeathers. "White," he replied, wishing more than anything that he could see her eyes.

"What are you doing in here?" Logan asked from the doorway as he saw Warren and Angel. "I was just introducing myself to Angel," Warren replied, hastily folding his wings back up and stepping away from Angel. Logan almost smiled; he could smell that the kid was still scared of him, which amused him greatly. "Why don't you go introduce yourself to your bed," Logan said, motioning to the hallway, "You should be in your room."

At the fatherly suggestion from Logan, Warren shot him a piercing glare and left the room.

"Here ya go," Logan said, handing Angel one of the bottles in his hand. "How old is he?" Angel asked, taking a sip. "I dono, around sixteen," Logan replied, somewhat irritated by her interest in Warren, "Too young for you, I'm afraid." "How would you know?" Angel challenged, "Do you know how old I am?" "I'm guessing, mmm, 25, 26?" "Close enough," Angel replied, polishing off her pizza, "And you?" "It's not important," Logan replied, his spine stiffening, "So where do you want to sleep? You could stay down in the lab; there's the bed there, or I know there's a spare room somewhere." "How about not the lab," Angel replied, "I'm not so much a fan of that whole antiseptic smell."

Angel followed Logan down the carpeted hall and she almost dropped her half-empty beer bottle when there was a whoosh of air and punching noise right beside her. Then she heard a soft voice with a German accent say, "Logan, de Professor asked me to show you vhich room vas free. I take it dis is de girl." Angel smiled and said, "Yes, I am 'de girl.' My name is Angel." " 'For the good angel will keep him company, and his journey shall be prosperous, and he shall return safe.' I am Kurt Wagner," the German man said, quoting the Bible. He took Angel's hand and kissed it, continuing, "But in de Munich Circus I vas known as De Incredible Nightcrawler and—" "Yeah, that'll happen when you have blue skin, gold eyes and a tail," Logan said, half a grin on his face. "Nice to meet you Kurt," Angel said, "Can I call you Goldie?" "If you vish," he replied, a smile in his voice, "The empty room is at de end of de hall. Have a good night, Angel." There was that same punching and whooshing noise and then Kurt was gone.

"I take it he's a teleporter?" Angel asked as Logan led her into the empty room. "Yah," Logan replied, trying to steer the topic away from mutant abilities; he didn't particularly want Angel to know what his were. It was nice having someone know him who didn't know he was a monster. "If you need anything, just holler. My room's next door. I'll get Jean to bring you some clothes in the morning."

Angel sat down on the bed and slipped under the covers. "Thanks, Logan," she said, "I'm sorry to be such a burden to you all." "You're not a burden," Logan said, surprised by his willingness to reassure her, "This is what the Professor is all about; helping mutants." He checked that the window was locked, and then glanced back at Angel. When he saw her toss her tank top and shorts on the floor, he cleared his throat, the realization that she was naked under the sheets making his pants a little uncomfortable. "Goodnight, Logan," Angel said as he turned out the light. "I'll see you in the morning, Angel," he replied softly.

Just before Angel drifted off to sleep, she hopefully thought, _Maybe I won't have any nightmares tonight._


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry this is so short. I'm working on the next section and am having some issues filling in the plot gaps. Thanks to everyone who is bearing with me and still reading this!

3 :D

Logan awoke to an unfamiliar sound, and after pausing to pull on a pair of sweatpants, he stepped out into the hallway and cocked his head. Walking a few steps down the hall, he put his ear to Angel's door and heard labored breathing and struggling. "Angel," he called through the door, "Is everything ok?" When he got no reply, he turned the knob and found that it was locked. Extending one of his claws, Logan deftly picked the lock and opened the door.

Angel was curled in a ball under the covers, her head bowed. Her arms were curled around her head, looking like she was trying to protect herself from blows, and her breathing was shallow. Logan gripped her shoulder and said her name, gently shaking her. But she shrank away from him. Logan shook her harder. "Angel, wake up!" he said louder. Angel jerked and suddenly sat up, propelling herself into Logan's arms which automatically wrapped around her. "L-Logan," she whispered, trying to catch her breath.

Logan knew that Angel had been having a terrible nightmare, but he couldn't help the happy stirring feeling he got from holding Angel's supple body close to him. Her arms were around his neck and her face was buried in his shoulder. The sheet was between her body and his, but his hands rested on the warm bare skin of her back. Logan could feel a scar or two, but was more interested in the lovely expanse of pale neck and shoulder in front of his eyes.

Angel took a few more deep breaths and tried to clear her mind of the nightmare that plagued her, night after night. She felt Logan's strong arms around her and told herself again and again that she was safe now; he couldn't find her here. As she tried to banish the images from her nightmare, she accidentally brushed into Logan's mind.

All of a sudden, Logan felt an intrusion in his mind and he began seeing images of needles and scalpels and mutants in cages. "What the hell?" he muttered angrily, and Angel pulled out of his arms, back against the headboard, pulling the sheet up to cover her. "I'm sorry," she whispered, and Logan could smell the lingering remains of her fear strengthen, but not because of him.

"Are you afraid of your own power?" Logan asked, suddenly not angry at the mental intrusion anymore. Angel turned her face away from him and said nothing. Logan sat there patiently until finally Angel said, "I know that I can hurt people if I don't control it enough. So I just try to use it as infrequently as possible." "You shouldn't have to be afraid of your powers," Logan said, gently brushing Angel's knuckles, "The Professor can help you learn to control it better. We can talk to him tomorrow." Angel visibly relaxed and said, "Thank you, Logan." She slid back under the covers and Logan said, "Nightmares suck, but try and get some rest."

Back in his room, Logan rubbed his forehead. The images of tortured and experimented mutants from Angel's nightmare were stuck in his head, reminding him of his own beginnings, deep in the dam at Alkali Lake. _No more sleep for me tonight_, Logan thought stretching out on his bed, hands behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling.


End file.
